Cataract Questions

The best time to consider cataract surgery is when your vision begins to affect your daily activities such as reading road signs, newspapers, or experiencing glare and halos with head lights.

For those who elect to have laser cataract surgery instead of the traditional procedure, a LenSx® laser is used to make the surgical incisions and to break apart the old cataract clouded lens.Ultrasonic technology is then used to remove lens, so that an artificial intraocular lens may be implanted to take its place and restore customized focus.

Most medical insurance plans cover traditional cataract surgery. However, advanced technology replacement lenses may not be covered by insurance and may require an additional charge. As a patient, you are also responsible for paying your deductible, co-insurance, or co-pay. Our team will guide you through our affordable options and answer all of your questions.

We will do your cataract surgery in our ambulatory surgery centers located in Warsaw and Allied Physicians Surgery Center in South Bend. Although you will be with us for approximately 2 hours on surgery day, the surgical procedure itself lasts about 15 minutes.

We will administer a light sedative intravenously, and use topical drops to numb your eye before surgery.

No. Pain is not a typical side effect of cataract surgery. You likely will be very comfortable throughout your surgical procedure and recovery process.

Generally you will not have to wear a patch over your eye after cataract surgery. On rare occasions, the anesthetic may relax the eye muscles so much that it may make it difficult to close your eye completely for several hours after surgery. If this happens, you will want to keep the eye closed with a small coverlet to keep it from becoming overly dry. This coverlet would then be removed later that day or the next morning.

You should be able to see almost immediately following surgery. However, you may experience blurry vision for one to two weeks during the healing process.

If you need to wear eyeglasses before cataract surgery you may need to wear them after surgery. However, the prescription in your eyeglass lenses may change. Your need for reading glasses may depend on the type of lens implant you choose. Grossnickle Eye Center can provide several specialty lenses which can reduce your dependence or in some cases eliminate them entirely.

Most patients resume their normal activities the very next day.

Yes, you will need to be seen for a few post-operative visits to assure us that there are no complications and you are healing properly. You will typically be seen the day following surgery, and 2 to 3 weeks later. If you choose to follow up with your family optometrist, please make our staff aware so that we can make arrangements for you.